Bhagat Singh Study is a blog to know about great Indian martyr Bhagat Singh and other revolutionaries of the world, who played a historic role in shaping the destiny of Indian nation and the world. Bhagat Singh and Che Guevara like revolutionaries are the icons of youth, who wish to change the world. In this blog there are photographs, documents and research material about Bhagat Singh and other revolutionaries of the world.

Friday, 28 September 2012

Message to the Participants of the Birthday Celebration of Shaheed Bhagat Singh

Dear Comrades and Friends,

On the 105th Birthday of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, revolutionary greetings to all workers, peasants, women, youth and progressive intelligentsia of Pakistan. Our heartiest congratulations, to all the delegates and members of the Bhagat Singh Memorial Committee for organizing this important event to commemorate the Birthday of Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh, a great visionary and practioner of revolutionary struggle against British imperialism during our common freedom struggle.

Bhagat Singh was born at village Banga, District Layallpur ( Presently Faislabad in Pakistan) in the year 1907. He studied at Lahore and started his political struggle from the very soil of the city of Lahore. His martyrdom was also in Lahore on 23rd March 1931. Lahore remained an important centre for his revolutionary activities. So today’s celebration in Lahore is an appropriate historical event.

The organizers and the members present in the celebration are creating a milestone for the continuing anti-imperialist struggle in the South Asian region. This initiative, which has been conceived jointly by Pakistani and Indian comrades, who are working for the rights and dignity of the most marginalized sections, in this poorest region of the World. We strongly believe that today’s event will usher in a new political era in our common struggle against international capital and its agents operating in the region. Unfortunately the Indian delegation could not be physically present due to non clearance of visa formalities by the Pakistan Government. But we are very much present there with you in mind and spirit. We are committed to continue this process of uniting the radical and progressive forces of South Asian region against the onslaught of international capitalism and their illegal occupation in our space with all sincerity and vigor.

Let us celebrate this glorious day with the hope to build up new South Asian People’s democratic nations by driving out the imperialist forces. Bhagat Singh, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Habib Jalib, Hali Panipati, Sohan Singh Josh, Sukhdev, Rajguru, Asfaqulla, Bismil, Bhagawati Charan Vohra, Batukeshwar Dutt, Jatin Das, Kartar Singh Sarabha are our common heritage. They are still living in the memory of our common struggle for independence from British Colonialism and native reactionary forces. They are the symbols of our common struggle and heritage. Thus the celebration of the lives of our heroes is very much a part of our political and cultural struggle for emancipation of the toiling masses of the region.

A detailed article on the Bhagat Singh political struggle has already been sent to you all. We would again like to congratulate you all for taking this historic initiative to build up a strong worker, peasant movement against imperialist and feudal forces in South Asia.

The whole episode is very frustrating, we all spent a lot of time in the hope that we will get together, However, the colonial bureaucratic set up and prejudice political atmosphere made sure that we are separated from each other on this great occasion.

Baghat Singh Memorial Committee is going to protest the government against this non issuance of so-called clearance certificate. The host organisation, Labour Education Foundation on behalf of BSMC received three visits of intelligence agencies to receive information about LEF and those coming to Lahore after we formally launched a letter for all of you to come to Lahore. We even gave profile of each of the 32 Indian friends who were coming for this historic visit.

The time and money spent by these intelligence agencies to scrutinise the names of our respected Indian delegates would have better spent on other matters. The thinking of the intelligence agencies about those coming from Pakistan or India that there must be some spies within them had to be condemned in strongest terms. This so called "clearance regime" must come to an end.

Each one of the intelligence agency assured us that they are sending the clearance certificate. Apart from one, the two intelligence agencies failed to respond in time as we were told yesterday by a deputy secretary at Ministry of interior in Islamabad.

Some of the officers at the ministry suggested that you need a powerful "Safarish" (favours). I am personally totally against such safarishes, We do not want our Indian friends coming to Pakistan to join us on Baghat Singh birthday celebration as a result of "kind heart" of a rich politician. This will be against the message of Baghat Singh in any case.

I believe that a political decision has been taken to stop our Indian friends meeting their Left wing brothers and sisters. This expose the so-called new opening of the Pakistan Indian friendship era. The free hand is only for those who are from capitalist class or from Rich newspapers like Jang and Times Of India who have launched Amn Key Ashah. The Amn Key Asha seems to be an elitist club who have no priority of ordinary Indians and Pakistanis.

We will do our best to expose this attitude towards us by the government of Pakistan. We condemn this action in strongest terms.

We are going ahead with Baghat Singh birthday celebrations in Lahore today as planned with a heavy heart that you are not with us.

Hope we meet some day on this day, next year, a year after, and this will be tradition in Pakistan from now on. Baghat Singh is from all of us, he is our hero and his days will be celebrated as our Indian progressive radical friends do with full zeal.

We waited till 5.30 pm at Pakistan High Commission with officials, which otherwise were very courteous to get visa.Their regret was relating to non receipt of clearance from interior ministry of Pakistan. Though it has been frustrating for all of us, who were having high hopes to attend this historic event in Lahore, yet we wish to greet all the participants of this event. Bhagat Singh, in words of famous Pakistani Urdu writer-'is the biggest martyr of Pakistan'! And we share this sentiment and accept that he belongs to not only India and Pakistan, but whole of South Asia and also to all the oppressed and struggling masses of the world. He is as inspiring as Che Guevara from South America. Both Bhagat Singh and Che Guevara represent the strongest anti colonial anti imperialist struggle of the world working classes and other toiling masses. Born in chak no. 105, Lyallpur Bange, now Faislabad, studied in Lahore and martyred in Lahore, Pakistan can and should take genuine pride in honoring son of its own soil! And I greet all the participants and share their pride.Bhagat Singh was the first South Asian to popularize the slogan-Inqlab Zindabad-Long live revolution and Down with Imperialism-samrajyavad ka naash ho..I hope these slogans will reverberate the 28th September event!

I had collected ten copies of documentary -'Inqlab', made on the life of Bhagat Singh by Gauhar Raza and also 50 copies of Bhagat Singh ke Syasi Dastavez- book in Urdu, but these like us could not make to Lahore! But I wish and hope at this moment organizers and activists can distribute following material in Urdu-